An illustrated reference of culinary spices and herbs added to food to enhance its flavour. They take the form both of things cooked with food, and those added to food once cooking is completed.
Chefs know that using spices and fresh herbs can add that extra zest and sparkling flavour to mundane recipes. This section isn’t meant to be an exhaustive treatise on the use of spices and herbs, rather, we want to provide the knowledge on some of the more popular spices and herbs that many cooks may find helpful. This knowledge will give you a quick start to using spices and fresh herbs in your own culinary creations.
A spice is defined as any part of a plant other than the leaf, and may be the buds, bark, roots, rhizome, berries, seeds or stigma. Most spices are dried, many only acquiring their distinctive flavours by the enzymatic reactions triggered in the curing process. Their flavour is often heightened by dry-roasting.
A herb is defined as a plant whose green parts, usually the leaves, but sometimes the stalks, are used. For eons, herbs have been used for medicinal, cosmetic and culinary purposes; here only the last-named is considered. Herbs are used fresh or dried. When dried, the water is removed, leaving the essential oils which give the herb its flavour, effectively concentrating the flavour of the herb. Generally about one-third the amount of a dried herb equates to its being used fresh. However, fresh and dried herbs are not always interchangeable; most dried herbs lose their fresh “top notes” and those with especially volatile oils lack their key flavour.
Humans have been using spices almost as long as they’ve been eating. Just as classic recipes evolved, so did spice blends and mixtures. By making your own mixes, you can adjust flavours to suit your personal needs. There are literally hundreds of spice mix combinations on the market. We have included a selection of the most popular blends from around the world.
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- 7-Apr-2011Ajwain
- Ajwain is a popular spice in India, where both fruits and leaves of this pungent plant (Trachyspermum ammi) in the parsley family are used. The small, hard, oval, pale brown fruits (often mistakenly called seeds) are grayish and resemble cumin or caraway in shape…
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- 3-Nov-2009Allspice
- Allspice takes its name from its aroma, which smells like a combination of spices, especially cinnamon, cloves, ginger, and nutmeg, hence the name ‘wonderpeper’ (marvelous pepper) in Afrikaans. It’s produced from the unripened dried berries of an evergreen tree native to Caribbean regions…
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- 7-Apr-2011Amchur
- Amchur, a pale gray to light yellow powder made from dried unripe mangos (Mangifera indica), is used as a spice in northern India for its subtle, tart, and slightly resinous flavour and souring capabilities. The name means mango (am) powder (chur)…
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- 7-Apr-2011Anardana
- Anardana is the dried seeds of varieties of pomegranate (Punica granatum) too sour to eat as fresh fruit; they have a tangy, fruity flavour. The wild pomegranate called daru, which grows in the southern Himalayas, is reputed to yield the best anardana…
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- 3-Apr-2011Angelica
- Angelica is one of the most flamboyant-looking herbs, with long, thick, hollow, pale green, celery-like stems supporting huge umbrellas of greenish white flowers above bright green, serrated, flat leaves. The roots, stems, leaves, and seeds of angelica are all edible and share an earthy, bittersweet, warm flavour reminiscent of licorice and juniper.
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- 3-Nov-2009Aniseed
- Aniseed (Pimpinella anisum, also anìs (stressed on the second syllable) and anise) has small sage green to yellow ochre crescent-shaped seeds similar to caraway in appearance, with a distinct sweet though not overpowering liquorice flavour…
- Total Views: 141 | Word Count: 485
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- 7-Apr-2011Annatto
- The dark red seeds of the annatto tree (Bixa orellana), a tropical evergreen, are used mainly for the deep reddish orange colour they impart. Annatto, native to Latin America, is now cultivated in many tropical countries, especially the Philippines…
- Total Views: 121 | Word Count: 602
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- 7-Apr-2011Arugula
- Arugula (Eruca sativa), a member of the Brassica family, is a tender leafy green - wonderful as a salad addition but is also excellent in cooked dishes such as pastas and sautés, and as a bed for grilled, seared, or roasted seafood and meats…
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- 12-Apr-2011Asafetida
- Asafetida (Hing) is an essential ingredient in Indian vegetarian cooking. Asafetida is the strong-smelling, even stinking, dried brownish resin extracted from the root of a plant (Ferula assafoetida) that grows wild from the eastern Mediterranean to central Asia…
- Total Views: 173 | Word Count: 503
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- 3-Nov-2009Bay Leaves
- Bay leaves refer to the aromatic leaf of the Bay Laurel (Laurus nobilis, Lauraceae). Fresh or dried bay leaves are used in cooking for their distinctive flavour and fragrance. The leaves are often used to flavour soups, stews, braises and pâtés in Mediterranean Cuisine. The fresh leaves are very mild and do not develop their full flavour until several weeks after picking and drying…
- Total Views: 169 | Word Count: 571
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